Whiteside
A topographic surname for someone who lived by the white side of a hill, field, wood, or similar place.
The #3,191 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 27,241 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The name is usually explained as a place-based surname from Old English hwit, meaning “white,” plus side, “side” or “slope.” In other words, it likely described someone who lived by a pale or light-colored hillside, bank, or other “white side” of the landscape. The element side is a common topographic word in older English surnames.
History
19th-century surname writers treat Whiteside as an English local name, and the form appears early enough to be recorded in medieval rolls. It has long been used in northern England in particular, though it later spread more widely. The surname is straightforward in form and has remained stable in spelling compared with many older English names.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Several older surname books group Whiteside with other landscape names such as Garside, Handyside, and Silverside, all built on the same topographic pattern.
From the historical record
“WHITES, White's (Son): v. White. WHITESIDE (Eng.) Dweller at the White Side (of a hill, dale, etc.) [O.E. hwit -\- side] Richard Whhside.—Hund. Rolls. WHITETHREAD (Eng.)a curious corrupt form of the common A.-Sax. pers. name Wihtrckd = Sprite-Counsel [O.E. wiht,”
— Surnames of the United Kingdom: a concise etymological dictionary (2 vols in 1)